London Calling
by AccioLumos1832
Summary: When Emma has to go to the UK for work and takes Regina and Henry along with her, Regina thinks that she won't find any enjoyment out of spending an entire summer in the UK. But when she meets Robin, she finds herself admitting she was wrong. AU Modern day OutlawQueen.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: So thanks to all who gives this a read. Before you start to read there are a few things I'd like to point out. Firstly, I'm British so the spelling will be the way I was taught in school as I know that Americans spell some words differently to us. Secondly, this story is AU and my first attempt at writing Once Upon A Time, I'm a huge fan of the show and decided to give this a try. Thirdly, I will be sticking to some things from the show but because it's AU I can go a little off track. In this story, Henry is still adopted by Regina and Emma lives with them as his biological mother so he still gets his two mums, he was adopted by Daniel who is still dead and Henry can't really remember him. Neal isn't in this story unless I change my mind later on down the line. Robin is divorced with five year old Roland, Marian will be in the story with a complication later on and Henry is aged ten.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing. **

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><p>As she finished typing the last few words in her email before signing her regards, her name and company position, Regina looked up at the circular clock that sat on the wall opposite her desk. It was nearly three-thirty in the afternoon and she smiled widely, her white teeth sparkling as she remembered what today was. The last day of school and Henry was finished for the summer, three long months of taking her son to museums, zoos, libraries, restaurants and taking him to the amusement park on Coney Island. She had it all planned out on her days off what they were going to do and had asked Emma to join them on some occasions, it had been a while since they had done anything as a family.<p>

Henry's school was five blocks away from the Senator's office where she worked as a secretary so he usually met her from work after catching the bus. Sometimes Emma picked him up if she wasn't chasing a wanted bounty who had skipped bail but lately Emma's work had her working through the night and when Regina left to take Henry to school at eight-thirty in the morning, Emma was only just getting in from work. So when her smile faded and she hit the button to send the last email, she knew her roommate was in a deep sleep and probably hadn't showered yet.

As she was pulling her bag on to her shoulder, in stepped the ten year old boy with dark messy hair and hazel eyes and that innocent smile that she adored. Henry greeted his mother with a hug before the two hurried out of the office, not wanting to be caught for a last minute critical chat with the Senator.

"How was your day?" Regina asked, as they stepped out on to the street.

Henry shrugged, "Mom it's school, it sucks. But on the upside we actually finished a class book this semester." he replied.

Regina smiled, knowing that her son loved books more than anything and that finishing a class book was actually an achievement for Henry's teacher. The two walked down the street slowly; not in a rush to walk the three blocks to their apartment.

"Hey mom?"

Regina looked down at her son, "What is it Henry?" she questioned.

"Can we get pizza for dinner?"

She laughed slightly, having expected this question since his hinting at pizza toppings at breakfast that morning. Regina didn't usually believe in fast food, having made her son eat healthy dinners and told him the fibs that she had been told as a child by her father to encourage a three year old to eat. Henry had been quite difficult to encourage to eat his vegetables as a small child and so when he had gotten older and understood the concept of bribery, she had promised him pizza once a week if he ate all his healthy meals from Monday to Friday.

They finally reached their apartment after Henry had asked her how her day had gone. Regina fiddled with her keys in the lock before giving the door a light kick to open it. Henry climbed the three flights of stairs first before knocking on their apartment door. Emma answered the knock and let them in, grumbling how the kid should have his own set of keys or learn to wait for Regina to get to the door to let them both in rather than waking her up. Regina chuckled lowly, knowing that Henry did it for his own amusement.

"Cheer up sleeping beauty." Regina called, dumping her bag on the kitchen counter.

Emma grumbled again but Regina didn't hear what she said. She picked up the mail and began opening hers, bill after bill after bill. Luckily she had the money sitting in her bank account to pay them all on time.

"Regina, can I talk to you for a second?" Emma asked, walking back into the kitchen and turning on the coffee machine.

She chucked the mail back on to the counter before propping herself on to a stool.

"What is it Miss Swan?" Regina asked.

Emma snorted at the use of Regina's formality but it was something that the two of them were both used to by now that neither of them were bothered to change it. Regina on some occasions would use Emma's forename but if both were comfortable with Regina calling Emma 'Miss Swan' then neither of them saw any reason to change it.

Regina watched as Emma's facial expression turned to apologetic, "I know we said we'd take the kid out this summer but I've been called to work in London. My boss has been contacted by Scotland Yard, they're having trouble catching a thief they call 'The Pirate' and because he's a top bounty hunter, they asked for his help." Emma explained.

"The pirate?" Regina scoffed.

Emma nodded and smiled, "He steals jewels and gold from jewellers and museums hence the nickname. Anyway, my boss has busted his ankle and has asked me to go in his place-"

"Then I suggest you tell Henry." Regina replied sharply.

"You didn't let me finish."

"There's more?"

Emma nodded, "I explained that I've got Henry and my boss was very understanding. So all expenses paid for the next ten weeks; you, me and Henry are going to London." she explained.

Regina's eyes widened, "Emma, that..." she coughed, a little astonished that her son's biological mother would do this, "That's very generous but I have work and-"

"I've already arranged it with Senator Gold."

"You have?" Regina questioned with slight disbelief, knowing that Gold wouldn't make a deal with Emma without getting something in return.

"Sure have, now get a bag packed. We leave tomorrow morning and don't worry about Gold." Emma said confidently.

"Emma, you don't have to do this. I didn't ask you for this." Regina replied, her pride having taken a little hit.

When Emma had first arrived on the scene nine months ago, she had hated her. She didn't want someone who had given up all right to Henry to come in and ruin their bond, their relationship. But after speaking with Henry, she had realised that she had put her son on the backburner, pouring her focus into her work and that had made Henry feel lonely and unloved; and he had sought out Emma. Henry had run away to Boston to find his birth mother before Emma had brought him home and helped her to see what she had been doing to Henry.

Since then Regina had found out that Emma was being evicted from her apartment in Boston due to not having much work. Henry asked her if Emma could move in because he wanted to get to know his birth mother and Regina reluctantly agreed, all she wanted was her son's happiness and she was still learning to live with Emma and the two sometimes clashed over their differences.

"I know but you took me in and let me bond with Henry. I wanted to do it and I promised that one day I would pay you back."

Regina heard the sound of one of Henry's video games loudly from the lounge before lowering her voice, "I did all that for Henry, not for you." she hissed.

"Whatever it was Regina, you're not as bad as every one thinks you are. Our little boy believes that more than anyone." Emma replied before going into the lounge to tell Henry the good news.

Regina sighed and chucked the mail into the kitchen drawer before picking up the phone to arrange a house sitter for the next ten weeks. As much as she would like to visit England's capital city, there were things that needed to be put into place and taken care of while they were away. She knew that Henry would love to go to London for his summer vacation, it was like going to Disneyland. But for herself, she was unsure; what could she possibly find in London to enjoy?


	2. Chapter 2

The flight from JFK to London Heathrow lasted nearly seven and a half hours, making Regina feel even more tired than the eight hours she spent at the office Monday-Friday. They managed to get through the crowds at Heathrow airport and into the car that Emma's boss had arranged to take them to the Premier Inn hotel in Westminster. Henry was excited, staying in the heart of London, so close to the London Eye and the Houses of Parliament. The UK was a lot stranger than the USA, for starters she was glad that she didn't have to drive in this country, the roads were different due to people in this country driving on the other side of the road. She already missed the sunny weather that was in New York when they had left, when they reached their hotel it was pouring down with rain and it made her feel miserable.

Their hotel room consisted of two double beds and a small ensuite shower room supplied with hand towels and bath towels and fluffy white bath mat situated at the entrance to the shower. Regina looked at the two beds, knowing that she would have to become accustomed to Emma's snoring over the next ten weeks but on the plus side, she was used to Emma being out at work until the early hours of the morning and although she didn't know much about Emma's working hours here in the UK, she hoped that the snoring she would have to put up with would be kept to a minimum.

Henry began to unpack his suitcase into the wardrobe that stood next to the window with Regina phoning down to reception to ask if there was a laundry service within the hotel or if there was a local launderette where she could take their dirty clothes, only to discover that she would have to do their own laundry. Emma chucked her clothes into the drawers, annoucing that she was due to meet with the detectives in an hour.

"You have to work already?" Regina asked, slightly surprised that Emma was required to work when they hadn't even been in the city for a while yet.

Emma nodded, "It's nearly five, the officers want me to get briefed before we meet tomorrow morning. Why don't you and the kid head out for dinner?" she replied.

"Henry, where do you want to eat?" Regina asked.

Her son shrugged his shoulders as he closed the doors to the wardrobe, "I don't know Mom, can we walk around and see what's around?" he said.

Regina smiled, knowing how eager Henry was to look around Westminster from the minute he was telling her all the sights that he wanted to see during their stay in the UK. But she wasn't spending the whole time in London, she had heard that the New Forest in the south was a good place to go camping and she hadn't been camping since she was in her mid teens, her father used to take her during the summer vacation.

"Mom, can we see the Tower of London tomorrow? And the British museum? And maybe can we see what the libraries in England are like-"

Regina laughed slightly, ruffling her son's hair, "Slow down Henry, we're here for ten weeks. Let's spread it out a little bit." she said quietly.

"See you later kid." Emma bade goodbye, kissing Henry's forehead before saying her goodbyes to Regina and leaving the room.

Picking up her own suitcase, she unpacked her clothes into the draws that Emma had left empty for her own belongings. Henry was telling her facts about the Tower of London as she finished unpacking before she turned and smiled, grabbing her jacket and cardkey and hurrying out of the room with Henry to stroll around Westminster, enjoying the sites of the Houses of Parliament and the London Eye as the sun began to set. As they continued to walk through Westminster, they came across a Chinese Restaurant.

"Mom, can we ignore the healthy rule?" Henry asked.

Regina smiled, "I'm sure my little Prince can go one night without vegetables." she agreed.

Henry's eyes lit up as they entered the restaurant, being seated at a table near the bar. The tables were small squared with cream tablecloths draped over the top with matching armchairs and a cushiony seat. As they sat, the waiter brought over a glass of red wine for Regina and a coca-cola for Henry and the two of them ordered the chicken and peppers covered in sweet and sour sauce with a portion of egg fried rice. They ordered the duck and vegetable soup for starters and the waiter took their menu's, making Regina look around the crowded restaurant and feeling a moment of nostalgia.

She remembered her first date with Daniel, he had booked them a table at a restaurant in Brooklyn only to find that there was an hours wait on the table and getting rather hungry, the two decided to order Chinese takeout and return to her house where their date had been cut short by the return of her mother. Cora always had disapproved of her romantic relationships but Daniel was the first she truly hated. After several arguments she moved in with her father who looked after foster children and for a while, she helped her father out with the children who came and went through the home and during that time period, she and Daniel had gotten serious. Regina had been seventeen when she met Daniel, a ranch owner's son from Texas who was attending college at NYU but the two had gotten rather serious and when she graduated from high school, she studied political science and law whilst she continued to help her father with the foster children.

Regina was twenty-one when she graduated with her bachelor's degree and it was then that Daniel proposed to her and she accepted. Everything was going smoothly, her mother was a senator and got her job as part of the campaign team whilst she continued to help her father and Daniel got a job at the butchers whilst they looked for their own apartment.

It was when she turned twenty-two that she came across Henry, a three week old placed into temporary foster care due to the family from Boston who had wanted to adopt him fell through. He didn't have a name but she felt an instant connection to the little boy and although he fussed the first few times she tried to settle him, he eventually grew used to her. She had never thought about having children of her own until that moment and called him Henry, after her father. The boy had come to mean as much to her as her father did. A year passed and ater many attempts of people not wanting adopt Henry as their own, Regina spoke with Daniel about making Henry their own.

Daniel had protested at first, _"Regina, I'm twenty-four, you're twenty-three there's no way that they'll let us adopt a kid." _he had said. But she stated her case, they were getting married, she had formed a good bond with Henry and that she already loved him as her own, they both had good jobs and had saved a lot of money, they had a two bedroom apartment that they rented and they could get good references. It took a lot of persuading Daniel and another year going through the process but eventually Henry was legally their son.

Little Henry Mills was theirs and for two years, they lived happily as a family in their little apartment providing Henry with everything he could possibly need. They took him to the ranch that Daniel's parents owned for holidays which Henry loved because he and Daniel would spend hours riding the horses and pretending to be Knights where she would be their damsel in distress that they would rescue. Those two year, they were happy but it was shortly before Henry's fifth birthday that disaster struck. Daniel had been visiting his family back in Texas when a horse got spooked and although Daniel tried to get away, the horse kicked him in the head and caused internal bleeding, he died three days later.

"Mom?"

She was brought back to reality, smiling at her son when she noticed that the waiter had been placed their starters in front of them. She picked up the spoon and just as she was about to place the first spoonful into her mouth, there was shouting and chaos coming from the bar. Regina looked up to see that a bearded man with light brown hair arguing with the bartender and her waiter over being refused service at the bar when the man tripped, falling into their table and landing hot soup all over her dress.

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><p><strong>AN: I'm leaving it there but it will be continued in the next chapter. Please remember that I'm not from the USA I'm from the UK so I apologise if there are elements to this story that you don't like. Next chapter should be up within the next few weeks :)**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: I apologise that it's been a while since I updated this story but I wanted to somethings out to you, the way the education system worked when I went to senior school was we left at sixteen, went to college which is further education for us between the ages of 17-18 and then university from 18+ which I know Americans call college, just in case if some of you are american and get confused about some of the references I make to British education in this chapter. But I hope you like it, please let me know your thoughts. **

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><p>He had hit rock bottom. He felt for not the first time in his life that his existence had no meaning, that he had no reason to go on and so that was why he was sat here in a pricey chinese restaurant in Westminster, building up his bar tab. Robin Locksley had screwed up everything and he wasn't sure how he was going to fix it.<p>

Six months ago he had been happily married with a happy five year old son and a successful business running his own camping supply shop with his best friend. But then something happened and his business was losing money, the van got repossesed and he was beginning to fall behind on mortgage repayments. But instead of telling Marian about it, he kept it to himself. Instead of speaking to his wife about their financial problems what did he do? He called up an old friend.

Killian Jones had been his best friend since they were five and as teenagers they had been in trouble with the coppers quite a lot. Mostly stealing cars and joyriding which resulted in fines and community service but Robin had stopped when he met Marian when they went to college; with Robin studying an Outdoor Adventure A level and Marian had been studying Public Services A level and the two met when the courses had to share the ICT suite. But Killian didn't like that he was changing and persuaded him to go on another joyride with him one weekend and he stupidly agreed, driving the car. The two of them had been drinking heavily and he took his eyes off the road for one second when he crashed into something.

He thought it had been a deer but it had been a teenager who attended their college and he panicked. The police came and they fled the scene in the car, wiping down every inch of the car to remove their fingerprints. Luckily the boy who had been run over lived and survived with minor injuries but Robin was wracked with guilt. The police were still hunting and he didn't want to lose Marian but he couldn't keep quiet about the incident. After many arguments with Killian, his friend could see that what he had with Marian was a good way for him to get his life sorted and Killian took the blame for him and ever since that day Robin vowed to live by a code; be truthful, righteous and good and he got his life together. He went on to university with him getting a degree in Business and Marian went on to join the police force. A few years later they married, bought a house in the London suburbs and he opened the shop with John Little, his best friend from university. They had Roland and everything was fine.

_He entered the bar, spotting Killian sitting in near the fire exit in case he needed a quick escape. Some things would never change there. Robin sat opposite his friend, picking up the full bottle of beer that sat in front of him. _

_"It's been a long time mate." Killian greeted. _

_"It has." Robin agreed, taking a swig from the bottle. _

_"How's that lovely wife of yours?" _

_"How do you know we married?" Robin asked. _

_"I read the papers mate, now what can I do for you?" Killian replied. _

_Robin hesitated as Killian raised an eyebrow, "I know you're still in a life of crime." he uttered. _

_"I am, you can take the lad away from the crime but you can't take the crime out of the lad." Killian said quietly with a grin. _

_Robin looked around, making sure that nobody could hear their conversation. _

_"I need a lot of cash and quick, I need to pay off some mortgage repayments, the car and some business expenses before the baliffs come knocking again. Marian doesn't know we're doing that badly but-" _

_Killian held his hand up, swigging the last drop of beer from his own bottle before placing it down on the table once it was empty. _

_"You need my help." _

_Robin nodded, avoiding his friend's stare. _

_"I owe you one so if you have a job that you need assistance with then count me in but I need a cut." Robin mumbled. _

_Killian grinned again, "Two years mate is nothing really. The ladies love a bad boy but yes I do have a job I need help with and after our experiences as boys, you're the perfect man for the job." he said. _

Robin relived that conversation and the job everyday, even dreamed about it that he hadn't slept properly in months. Killian had built up an entire network of crime associates and had become known as 'The Pirate' for stealing expensive jewellery from jewellery shops and selling them on to even dodgier blokes. So that night when Killian had text him where they would meet, he told Marian he was going to the pub for a couple and he'd be back late. It was a lie, a pretty convincing one that she didn't question who he was meeting. So he met with Killian, robbed a jewellers in Regent Street and sold the diamonds they had stolen from the safe to an Italian mobster and was given half the cut by Killian.

And for a while he thought things would be okay, he placed the money in small amounts into his joint account with Marian and paid off the money they owed on the mortgage and sorted out his business expenses and set up a payment plan for the car. Marian usually left the finances to him and that's why he thought he had gotten away with it.

_He returned home from work one evening holding a bottle of wine, having agreed to have a nice quiet night in with Marian. Roland was already asleep as he took off his shoes and went through to the living room to see Marian holding up some bank statements and some letters regarding the business expenses that he had paid off. His smile fell as she shrieked at him all sorts about where that amount of money had come from and how he had gotten that amount of cash so fast. He was forced to come clean and his wife wasn't impressed when she heard the whole story. _

_"You stole from a jewellers to get money? Why?" Marian shouted. _

_Robin explained himself over and over, he did it for them, he did it so that their son would have a roof over his head and a business to inherit one day. He did it so that the house they loved so much, the house that was filled with so much of Roland's first experiences and so many happy memories would still be theirs. But none of that seemed to matter to Marian. _

_"You're a lowlife thief, you're no better than Killian. I thought you were done with him when he went to prison for hit and run. I thought you weren't that type of person. What else have you lied to me about?" _

That night, Marian had left to stay with her parents in Croydon. The next day she collected Roland and said that he wasn't seeing either of them for a while, she needed some space and time to get her head around what he had done. That had been three months ago and he hadn't seen his son or his wife. He had tried phoning her a few hours ago but she refused to let him speak with his son, saying that Roland deserved a better father and she was right. Roland did deserve better.

So here he was, drowning his sorrows and owing god knows how much in a bar tab. Robin downed his pint before asking the bartender to pour him another but the bloke shook his head and said, "I think you've had enough sir."

"I want a-an-auvva beeeer." Robin slurred.

"Sir, I think you need to leave."

"I'm not g-going a-an-anywhere un-un-until you-you se-ser-serve me!" Robin shouted.

The bartender and a waiter started shouting at him to leave or they'd call the police when he jumped up from his stool and began shouting back, not even knowing or caring what he was saying when he tripped backwards, falling into a table with food flying everywhere and all he could see was the cold stare from the dark brown eyes of the woman who was sat at this table.


End file.
